The Solutions Lab: A New Model for Advancing Disabled-Owned Small Businesses

Introduction

The Solutions Lab supports entrepreneurs with disabilities through two resources that are rarely available to them together:

1. Social capital: mentoring, networking, and hands-on problem-solving
2. Financial capital: 4% to 5% interest loans on favorable repayment terms

The Solutions Lab will be incorporated under Ludke Consulting, LLC, a consultancy focused on the idea that disability employment and innovation create long-term value for society.

Ludke Consulting, LLC has committed $25,000 of its own capital, of which $10,000 has already gone out as a loan to Sekond Skin Society, a fitness app, a community, and a movement built on one belief: fitness should work for every body, not just some bodies.

Donations to The Solutions Lab will be tax-deductible and will remain invested in The Solutions Lab. 70% of donations will go to the loan fund, 20% will be used to fund the delivery of the social capital of The Solutions Lab, and 10% will be for day-to-day operations.

While The Solutions Lab operates with a philanthropic purpose and will either be organized as or affiliated with an established nonprofit, it will have a business-oriented mindset. There are two reasons for this. First, donors expect their funds to maximize impact under reasonable timeframes, something the private sector does well. Second, we want to model best practices for members of The Solutions Lab. If they are expected to generate a profit, The Solutions Lab must do the same, although all profits earned by The Solutions Lab are turned back into the organization.

Value proposition and target audience

The Solutions Lab is built for individuals with disabilities who are pursuing self-employment, whether at the idea stage or already in motion. Unlike accelerators focused on rapid scaling, The Solutions Lab supports small-scale businesses designed to provide real, sustained employment for the owner and their team. Further, this demographic does not have a credit history and thus cannot access traditional forms of financing such as loans or lines of credit from banks or other financial institutions.

This gap is particularly acute in mid-size communities and rural areas where access to both financial and social capital is limited.

How we measure progress

• How many entrepreneurs receive capital, and how much
• How many ventures are sustained 12 or more months after funding
• Whether credit scores and financial inclusion indicators improve over time
• Whether the visibility of disability-led businesses in the capital ecosystem grows

The Solutions Lab will publish an annual impact report to ensure transparency and share what’s working.